James Woods Biography (1947-)

Full name, James Howard Woods; born April 18, 1947, in Vernal, UT; son of Gail Peyton (an army intelligence officer) and Martha (a schoolteacher and preschool operator; maiden name, Dixon) Woods; brother of Michael Woods (an actor); married Kathryn Morrison-Pahoa (a costume designer), 1980 (divorced, 1983);married Sarah Marie Owen (a horse trainer), June 2, 1989 (divorced, 1990). Addresses: Agent: Chris Andrews, International Creative Management, 8942 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills, CA 90211; (voice work) William Morris Agency, 151 El Camino Dr., Beverly Hills, CA 90212-2775.; Manager: Keith Addis, Industry Entertainment, 955 South Carrilo Dr., Third Floor, Los Angeles, CA 90048.; Publicist: Guttman Associates Public Relations, 118 South Beverly Dr., Suite 201, Beverly Hills, CA 90212.

Nationality: American
Gender: Male
Occupation: Actor
Birth Details: April 18, 1947; Vernal, Utah, United States

Famous Works

CREDITS
Film Appearances
Bill Schmidt, The Visitors, United Artists, 1972
Lieutenant Wyatt, Hickey & Boggs, United Artists, 1972
Frankie McVeigh, The Way We Were, Columbia, 1973
Bank officer, The Gambler, Paramount, 1974
Larry, Distance, Coe, 1975
Quentin, Night Moves, Warner Bros., 1975
Crainpool, Alex & the Gypsy (also known as Love and Other Crimes), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1976
The Billion Dollar Bubble, 1976
Harold Bloomguard, The Choirboys (also known as Aenglarna),Universal, 1977
Gregory Powell, The Onion Field, Avco-Embassy, 1979
The fiddler, The Black Marble, Avco-Embassy, 1980
Aldo Mercer, Eyewitness (also known as The Janitor), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1981
Charles Pratt, Split Image (also known as Captured), Orion,1982
Fast-Walking Miniver, Fast-Walking, Lorimar, 1982
Max Renn, Videodrome, Universal, 1983
Jake Wise, Against All Odds, Columbia, 1984
Maximilian "Max" Bercovicz/Secretary Christopher Bailey, Once upon a Time in America (also known as C'era una volta in America), WarnerBros., 1984
Max Renn (in archive footage of Videodrome), Terror in the Aisles (also known as Time for Terror), 1984
Joshua Shapiro, Joshua Then and Now, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1985
Richard "Dick" Morrison, "Quitters, Inc.," Cat's Eye (also known as Stephen King's Cat's Eye), Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/United Artists, 1985
Richard Boyle, Salvador, Hemdale, 1986
Cleve, Best Seller, Orion, 1987
Lenny Brown, The Boost, Hemdale, 1988
Lloyd Hopkins, Cop, Atlantic, 1988
Eddie Dodd, True Believer (also known as Fighting Justice),Columbia, 1989
Michael Spector, Immediate Family (also known as Parental Guidance), Columbia, 1989
Detective lieutenant John Moss, The Hard Way, Universal, 1992
Gabriel Caine, Diggstown (also known as Midnight Sting), Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 1992
Jack Russell, Straight Talk, Buena Vista, 1992
Lawyer Scott, Chaplin (also known as Charlot), TriStar, 1993
Jack Benyon, The Getaway, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1994
Ned Trent, The Specialist (also known as El especialista),Warner Bros., 1994
Carl Panzram, Killer: A Journal of Murder (also known as The Killer), First Independent, 1995
H. R. Haldeman, Nixon, Buena Vista, 1995
Lester Diamond, Casino, Universal, 1995
Byron de la Beckwith, Ghosts of Mississippi (also known as Ghosts from the Past), Columbia, 1996
Reggie Makeshift, For Better or Worse, Columbia, 1996
Michael Kitz, Contact, Warner Bros., 1997
Uncle Sam, Kicked in the Head, Imperial Entertainment, 1997
Voice of Hades, Hercules (animated), Buena Vista, 1997
Alan Mann, True Crime, Warner Bros., 1998
Jack Crow, John Carpenter's Vampires (also known as Vampires and Vampire$), Columbia, 1998
Mel, Another Day in Paradise, Trimark, 1998
Colonel Robert Moore, The General's Daughter (also known as Wehrlos--Die Tochter des Generals), Paramount, 1999
Dr. Harvey Mandrake (some sources cite Dr. Powers), Any Given Sunday (also known as Gridiron and The League), Warner Bros., 1999
Ringside fan, Play It to the Bone (also known as Play It),Buena Vista, 1999
Voice of Hades, Hercules: Zero to Hero, Buena Vista, 1999
Mr. Lisbon, The Virgin Suicides (also known as Sophia Coppola'sThe Virgin Suicides), Paramount, 2000
Dr. Wilhelm Von Huber, Race to Space, Columbia/TriStar Home Video,2001
Father McFeely, Scary Movie 2 (also known as Scarier Movie), Miramax/Dimension, 2001
Mr. Leonard D'Onofrio, Riding in Cars with Boys, Columbia, 2001
Voice of General Hein, Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (animated; also known as Final Fantasy: The Movie and Fainaru fantaji),Columbia/TriStar, 2001
Voice of Dr. Phillium Benedict, Recess: School's Out (animated), Buena Vista, 2001
Dr. Raymond Turner, John Q, New Line Cinema, 2002
Himself, Behind the Scenes of "John Q" (documentary), New Line Home Video, 2002
Himself, The Return to the Onion Field, Kinowelt Home Entertainment, 2002
Voice of Falcon, Stuart Little 2 (animated), Columbia, 2002
Voice of Gloomius Maximus, Rolie Polie Oli: The Great Defender of Fun (animated), Walt Disney Home Video, 2002
Voice of Hades, Mickey's House of Villains (animated), 2002
Walter O'Brien, Northfork (also known as North Fork), Paramount, 2003
Film Work
Producer
(With others) Cop, Atlantic, 1988
Another Day in Paradise, Trimark, 1998
Television Appearances
Movies
Reporter, Footsteps (also known as Footsteps: Nice Guys FinishLast and Nice Guys Finish Last), 1972
Rick, A Great American Tragedy, 1972
Bank officer, The Gambler, 1974
Addict, Foster and Laurie, 1975
Assistant district attorney Joseph Ryan, The Disappearance of Aimee, NBC, 1976
Leonard "Lenny" Schoenfeld, F. Scott Fitzgerald in Hollywood, 1976
Captain Sammy Berg, "Raid on Entebbe," The Big Event, NBC, 1977
Alfred Browning, The Gift of Love, 1978
Danny Corelli, ... And Your Name Is Jonah, CBS, 1979
Sin Eater, The Incredible Journey of Doctor Meg Laurel, 1979
Assistant district attorney Robert K. Tannenbaum, Badge of the Assassin, 1985

James B. "Jim" Stockdale, In Love and War, NBC, 1987
Robert, "Hills Like White Elephants," Women and Men: Stories of Seduction, HBO, 1990
Walter Farmer, The Boys (also known as The Guys), ABC, 1991
Roy Marcus Cohn, Citizen Cohn (also known as Rules of Misconduct: The Roy Cohn Story), HBO, 1992
Matt Coler, Next Door, Showtime, 1994
Paul Clark (some sources cite Paul Moore or Tom), Jane's House, CBS, 1994
Danny Davis, Indictment: The McMartin Trial, HBO, 1995
Weston Tate, Curse of the Starving Class, Showtime, 1995
Temple Rayburn, The Summer of Ben Tyler, CBS, 1996
Dennis Barrie, Dirty Pictures, Showtime, 2000
Voice characterization, Daria: Is It Fall Yet? (animated), MTV, 2000
Rudolph "Rudy" Giuliani, Rudy!, USA Network, 2002
Specials
Andrew Lynch, "All the Way Home," Hallmark Hall of Fame, NBC, 1971
CBS' Happy New Year America 1986, CBS, 1985
D. J., "Promise," Hallmark Hall of Fame, CBS, 1986
Himself, Funny, You Don't Look 200: A Constitutional Vaudeville (also known as Funny, You Don't Look 200), ABC, 1987
Host, Crimes of Passion, ABC, 1988
Bill Wilson, "My Name Is Bill W." (also known as "The Bill Wilson Story"), Hallmark Hall of Fame, ABC, 1989
Host and narrator, Wildfire, TBS and PBS, 1990
Host and performer, Voices That Care, Fox, 1991
Larry King TNT Extra (also known as The Larry King Special ...Inside Hollywood), TNT, 1991
Welcome Home America!: A USO Salute to America's Sons and Daughters, ABC, 1991
Host and narrator, Mobs and Mobsters, ABC, 1992
HBO's 20th Anniversary--We Hardly Believe It Ourselves, HBO and CBS, 1992
Host, Great Television Moments: What We Watched, ABC, 1993
Inside the Academy Awards, TNT, 1997
Movie Surfers: Go Inside Disney's "Hercules," The Disney Channel,1997
Narrator, AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Movies, CBS, 1998
Narrator, America's Endangered Species: Don't Say Good-bye, NBC, 1998
Hollywood & Vinyl: Disney's 101 Greatest Musical Moments, VH1,1998
Masters of Fantasy: John Carpenter, Sci-Fi Channel, 1998
Host, World's Deadliest Earthquakes, ABC, 1999
Narrator, The Road to Rapture, Arts and Entertainment, 1999
AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Stars, CBS, 1999
The Triumph of Evil, PBS, 1999
Narrator, Cheating Las Vegas, The Learning Channel, 2000
Narrator, Palm Beach: Money, Power, and Privilege, Arts and Entertainment, 2000
Narrator, Sensational Cities: New York, The Learning Channel, 2000
Himself, America: A Tribute to Heroes, multiple networks, 2001
Narrator, Digging for the Truth: Archaeology and the Bible, History Channel, 2001
Series
Voice of Hades, Hercules (animated; also known as Disney's Hercules), ABC and syndicated, 1998-1999
Voice of Hades, House of Mouse (animated), ABC, 2001-2002
Miniseries
Karl Weiss, Holocaust (also known as Holocaust--The Story of the Family Weiss), NBC, 1978
Voice of John Adams, Founding Fathers, History Channel, 2000
Voice of John Adams, Founding Brothers, History Channel, 2002
Episodic
Caz Mayer, "Death Is Not a Passing Grade," Kojak, CBS, 1974
Larry Kirkoff, "The Kirkoff Case," The Rockford Files, NBC, 1974
Alex Welles, "The Great Debate," Welcome Back, Kotter, ABC, 1975
Doug, "Trail of Terror," The Streets of San Francisco, ABC, 1975
Ted Ayres, "A Time to Mourn," The Rookies, ABC, 1975
Danny Reeves, "Sins of Thy Father," Barnaby Jones, CBS, 1976
Lewis Packer, "Thanksgiving," Police Story, NBC, 1976
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, NBC, 1979
"Dead Man's Hand: Part 1," Young Maverick, CBS, 1979
"Dead Man's Hand: Part 2," Young Maverick, CBS, 1980
Host, Saturday Night Live (also known as NBC's Saturday Night, Saturday Night, and SNL), NBC, 1989
Late Night with David Letterman, NBC, 1989
Martin's lawyer in an Uncle Bouncy suit, Dream On, HBO, 1990
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, NBC, 1991
Late Night with David Letterman, NBC, 1992
The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, NBC, 1992
Mickey Cohen, "Since I Don't Have You," Fallen Angels, Showtime, c. 1993
Guest voice, "Homer and Apu," The Simpsons (animated), Fox, 1994
Inside the Actors Studio, Bravo, 1995
Saturday Night Special, Fox, 1996
The Entertainment Business, Bravo, 1998
Himself, The Howard Stern Show, E! Entertainment Television, 1999
Voice of Major Baklava, "Episode 3," Clerks (animated; also knownas Clerks TAS, Clerks: The Cartoon, and Clerks: Uncensored), ABC, 2000
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno (multiple episodes), NBC, 2001
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, NBC, 2002
Provided the voice of Hades for an episode of Toon Jam (animated);appeared in Shark Bay, The Comedy Channel; also appeared in episodesof other series.
Awards Presentations
The 41st Annual Emmy Awards, Fox, 1989
Himself, The Fifth Annual American Cinema Awards, 1990
Presenter, The Second International Rock Awards, ABC, 1990
Grammy Legends Show (also known as Grammy Living Legends Awards), CBS, 1990
Host, The 12th Annual Ace Awards (also known as The Golden AceAwards and Golden Ace Awards), syndicated, 1991
Presenter, The 44th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards, Fox, 1992
Presenter, The American Television Awards, ABC, 1993
Presenter, The Screen Actors Guild Awards, NBC, 1997
Presenter, The 23rd Annual People's Choice Awards, CBS, 1997
A Salute to Martin Scorsese (also known as The American Film Institute Salute to Martin Scorsese and 25th American Film Institute Life Achievement Award: A Salute to Martin Scorsese), CBS, 1997
Presenter, The 25th Annual People's Choice Awards, CBS, 1999
Hollywood Salutes Jodie Foster: An American Cinematheque Tribute,TNT, 1999
Presenter, The 26th Annual People's Choice Awards, CBS, 2000
Presenter, AFI Awards 2001, CBS, 2001
Presenter, The ESPY Awards, ESPN, 2001
Stage Appearances
Len, Saved, Chelsea Theatre Center of Brooklyn, Brooklyn Academy of Music, New York City, 1970
Borstal Boy, Lyceum Theatre, 1970
Conduct Unbecoming, Ethel Barrymore Theatre, New York City, 1970
Trial of the Catonsville Nine, Theatre at Good Shepherd-Faith Church, New York City, then Lyceum Theatre, both 1971
Bob Rettie, Moonchildren, Royale Theatre, New York City, 1972
Green Julia, Sheridan Square Playhouse, New York City, 1972
Finishing Touches, Plymouth Theatre, New York City, 1973
Radio Appearances
Episodic
Himself, The Howard Stern Show, 1999
RECORDINGS
Music Videos
(Archive footage from the film Against All Odds) "Against All Odds(Take a Look at Me Now)," by Phil Collins, c. 1984
"Voices That Care," 1991
Video Games
Voice of Hades, Hercules, 1997
Voice of Gar Hob, Of Light and Darkness, Interplay Productions, 1998
Voice of Hades, Kingdom Hearts, Square Soft/Square Electronic Arts, 2002
Audiobooks
Koko, Simon & Schuster, 1988
Mystery, Simon & Schuster, 1990
Two Past Midnight: Secret Garden, Secret Window, Penguin/Highbridge, 1991
WRITINGS
Screenplays
Falling in Love in Pongo Ponga (promotional film), SKYY Vodka, 2002

Further Reference

OTHER SOURCES

Books

International Dictionary of Films and Filmmakers, Volume 3: Actors and Actresses, St. James Press, 1996

Periodicals

American Film, May, 1987, p. 38; May, 1990, p. 18
Cosmpolitan, October, 1994, pp. 188-92
Empire, Issue 1996, 1997, pp. 70-71
Entertainment Weekly, February 7, 1997, p. 78; July 18, 1997, pp.87-90
Film Comment, January/February, 1997, pp. 49-60
Maclean's, July 21, 1997, p. 54
Madison, February, 1999, pp. 84-91
Movieline, February, 2000, pp. 66-69, 115
Newsweek, June 23, 1997, p. 68
Parade, May 23, 1999, pp. 4-6
People Weekly, June 26, 1995, p. 114; November 3, 1997, p. 115
Premiere, March, 1997, pp. 51-55
Starlog, August, 1997
Variety, May 4, 1998, pp. 83-84
Vogue, January, 1989, pp. 76-78

User Contributions:

Comment about this article, ask questions, or add new information about this topic:

forum